AURORA — Three teams from the Pikes Peak Region qualified for the state tournament, but all three of their runs were short-lived.
Discovery Canyon, Pine Creek and Sierra each lost their Round of 16 games on Friday. DCC and Pine Creek competed in the 4A tournament, while Sierra played in 3A.
Sierra loses heartbreaker to Sterling
It was a game of inches for Sierra.
The No. 8 Stallions trailed No. 9 Sterling by just one run with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning. Sierra’s Keishiaa Pearson belted a ball that looked like it would go past the Tigers’ infielders for a base hit.
But Sterling’s Ellie Soper made a herculean play, diving for the ball off a bounce and crawling to second base for the final out, clinching Sterling’s 11-10 win over the Stallions.
Discovery Canyon’s Cashlyn Murphy reaches second base safely against Greeley West in the state softball tournament Friday in Aurora.
“We went out with a bang,” Sierra coach Dustin Matlock said. “She crawled to second base to end the game. That’s pretty amazing, and there’s not much you can do about that.”
The Stallions and Tigers went back and forth the entire game.
Sterling scored the first run before Sierra scored two. Then, the Tigers scored four runs in the third inning before Sierra plated six runs in the third through fifth innings to take an 8-5 lead.
“We just fought,” senior catcher Samantha Venegas said. “We saw opportunities and took those opportunities.”
Matlock added, “From 1 to 9, they battled. They stayed within themselves.”
In the final two innings, though, Sterling took control.
Sterling hit five singles in a row to begin the sixth, allowing the Tigers to score four that inning. They added two runs on three hits and an error in the seventh while Sierra combined for just two runs in the sixth and seventh innings.
Tears filled the eyes of Sierra’s players as they walked off the field. The Stallions were only one swing away from prolonging their best season in program history, and that stung.
But a few minutes later, the team lifted its spirits while reflecting on their accomplishments.
Sierra finishes the year 16-7 overall, its best record ever. Just a few years ago, in 2019, the Stallions went 0-19. The trip to state was also Sierra’s first.
Venegas, who played her final game of high school softball on Friday, believes the groundwork is set for more success at Sierra.
Pine Creek's Kyleigh Croyle pitches against Holy Family in the state softball tournament in Aurora on Friday, Oct. 20, 2023.
“We didn’t get an opportunity in my earlier years, so I’m proud of my team and glad I got to come here as a senior,” she said. “It’s very special.”
Matlock believes the team’s camaraderie will help the Stallions remain a contender for years to come.
“These girls are just insanely close,” Matlock said. “They’re sisters, they hung out almost every day during the summer. They brought it to a different level than last year.”
Late rally not enough as DCC falls 8-5 to Greeley West
No. 5 Discovery Canyon took the lead early in its 4A Round of 16 game but couldn’t sustain that advantage, as the Thunder fell 8-5 against No. 12 Greeley West.
After scoring in the second inning, the Thunder’s offense stalled. And while the Thunder’s bats went cold, Greeley West’s offense came alive.
The Spartans scored six runs in the third inning on seven hits and an error. They went scoreless for the next two innings but added two more to their lead in the sixth inning.
“Hats off to Greeley West,” DCC coach Tanya Ramsay said. “They came out swinging and played hard. We made some fielding mistakes that we don’t usually make and our bats didn’t show up, so that put us in a hole.”
Discovery Canyon's Kassidy Randolph runs to third base against Greeley West in the state softball tournament in Aurora on Friday, Oct. 20, 2023.
DCC finally cut into the deficit in the sixth inning, scoring two runs to make it 8-3. Pitcher Bella Holcomb pitched a shutout seventh inning to give the Thunder a chance down five runs in the bottom of the inning.
Discovery Canyon scored two runs and loaded the bases with only one out. But Greeley West pitcher Ellyse Hydock struck out the next two batters to end the game.
It didn’t lead to a win, but the Thunder’s belief kept them in the game until the last pitch.
“The cool thing about the team is that they are fighters,” Ramsay said. “We knew there was still fight in them, and they absolutely proved that.”
The Thunder finish the 2023 season 20-6. They carried a 10-game winning streak into the state tournament.
DCC has made the tournament multiple times before, but the Thunder’s last appearance came in 2017. Their 2023 trip to state resets the foundation of winning at the school.
“For the senior class to turn the program over and give the younger kids a chance to have success, it has set the foundation again,” Ramsay said. “I couldn’t be more proud of our leaders for doing that.”
Pine Creek can’t catch up to Holy Family in 12-2 loss
Facing Holy Family, the No. 1 team in 4A, Pine Creek’s players and coaches knew they had a tough foe ahead of them. That held true on Tuesday, as the Eagles fell 12-2 to Holy Family in five innings.
The Tigers scored the first 10 runs of the game. Holy Family scored four runs in each of the first two innings before adding two in the fourth inning.
“Holy Family has a great group of players, and they’re coached incredibly well,” Pine Creek coach Travis Eberly said. “The challenge was countering their offensive output.”
No. 16 Pine Creek finally cut into the deficit in the fifth inning, scoring two runs on a home run from Victoria Darling. That was one of only two hits for Pine Creek all game, with the other coming from Kyleigh Croyle.
Pine Creek's Kyleigh Croyle pitches against Holy Family in the state softball tournament in Aurora on Friday, Oct. 20, 2023.
Even though the offense didn’t persist throughout the game, Eberly was proud of his team for fighting while facing a large deficit.
“They’re a scrappy bunch,” Eberly said. “It was a big stage and we were a little nervy the first few innings. Once we settled down and worked through the order, we adjusted our approach and produced some offense.”
Holy Family answered Darling’s home run with two runs to end the game via mercy rule.
Pine Creek ends the year 21-6, which is the Eagles’ best record in more than a decade. Between his strong, youthful team and the opportunity to play a juggernaut like Holy Family, Eberly believes his team will be even better in 2024.
“The growth from last year to this year was huge,” Eberly said. “They all worked their tails off, and they proved to themselves they can compete with anyone when they stay clean.”
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